Detachable mounting for boat seats



July 15, 1958 H. c. SAMUELS DETACHABLE MOUNTING FOR BOAT SEATS Filed May24, 1956 The present invention relates to detachable mountings for boatseats, and more particularly to boat seat mountings which. maybeattached to or removed from the ordi- 1 nary plankseatof-smallboats-suchas rowboats,-dinghies, sail-boatsorthe-like. e

The .conventionalplank-seats o'f small boats causegreat personaldiscomfort during-protracted periodsoffuse, par- 3 '9 ticularly when theoccupant is fishing. Heretofore; --the art has sought to provide morecomfortable seats by mounting chairs in the boat; but of course thesehave increased the cost of the boat and have been subject to theft. Theart has also sought to provide portable seats which could be used onconventional plank seats; but these have been unstable and subject totipping and accidental dislodgement from the plank seat, particularlywhen the occupant is engaged with casting or-with landing a fish.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide adetachable mounting for boat seats which may be readily engaged with ordisengaged from a conventional plank seat of a boat.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a detachablemounting for boat seats, which when engaged with a conventional plankseat of a boat will not be subject to accidental dislodgment.

The invention also contemplates provision of a detachable mounting forboat seats, which will maintain the boat seat stable against tipping.

Finally, it is an object of the invention to provide a detachablemounting for boat seats, which will be inexpensive to construct, easy toattach or remove, dependable in operation, and rugged and durable inuse.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following specification, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a boat showing the mounting of thepresent invention in use;

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of Figure 1,showing the position of a mounting according to the invention in use;

Figure 3 is an elevational cross-sectional view taken on the line 3-3 ofFigure 4;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a detachable mounting for boat seatsaccording to the invention; and

Figure 5 is an elevational fragmentary cross-sectional view showing amodified form of cam.

7 2,843,348 1 ,Batentedduly 1,5,13158 ,-.-tensible member9 hasa-lowersurface adaptedto lie flat on the, upper surface of plankseat 3.

3 Mounted, on v.top of member 9, on outer member, 13,

.isaspiderJS havinga vertical socket 17 for receiving and,rotatablysupporting the lower endof a swivel post 19 of boatzseat 5.,Spider has a plurality of radially extending webs, twoof which-arefastened to and extendalong .outerrmember .13, and the other two ofwhich extend laterally; outwardly of member 9 and comprise. stabilizer,,lgs:,21;which terminate downwardly and outwardlynin ,s'tabilizer, feet23, .the lower surfacesof which are, ,co-

planarwith the. aforementioned lower surface of memher, 9.

,Member. 9 is provided at both ends with downwardly depending legs, 25,one, at the, outer end of inner member 11, ,and two; on. a cross pieceat the outer end of outer m.mb er ,13. ,.Meanstareprovidedtfor engagingwith the opposite sideedgesof, plank seat 3, comprising; cams 27mountedr for rotation on lower ends, of, legs about axestransversetomember 9. Inuse, cams27will extend "inwardly;andinfthis sense, they hayeinner arcu ate cam 's'urfaces'29 which may 'ifdesiredbe covered withrubber Referring now to the drawings in greater detail, there or thelike for a better grip. As seen in Figure 3, in the position of use, theupper portions of cam surfaces 29 are spaced farther from theirassociated axes of rotation than are the lower portions of cam surfaces29.

In Figure 5, a' modified form of cam is shown, comprising aneccentrically rotatably mounted circular disc 31, the rotation of whichis limited by a detent pin 33. It will be noted that the effective camsurface and cam action of this modified form is the same as in theprevious form described above.

A crank 35 is journaled for rotation in the outer end of outer member 13and is in unitary assembly with a rod 37 disposed within outer member 13and having a screwthreaded inner end disposed in a complementaryscrewthreaded recess 39 in the inner end of inner member 11.

Rotation of crank 35 rotates rod 37; and hence, to engage the mountingwith a plank seat, the mounting is laid flat on the upper surface of theseat with cams 27 or 31 disposed inwardly, and crank 35 is turned in onedirection to adjust the length of member 9 by retracting inner member 11into outer member 13, thereby to grip the opposite side edges of plankseat 3 between cams 27. By virtue of the particular configuration of camsurfaces 29, the cams will attempt to turn-to relieve the outwardpressure against them, and in doing so will pull down on theirassociated legs 25, thus securing the lower surface of member 9 firmlyagainst the upper surface of plank seat 3. To disengage the mountingfrom the plank seat, the crank is merely turned in the oppositedirection.

In use, any tendency of the mounting to ride up and off the seat byvirtue of twisting forces resulting from movements of the occupant isresisted by the opposed cams 27, which cannot by virtue of theconfiguration of their surfaces 29 ride up andover center so long asplank seat 3 remains substantially intact. part of the twisting stressesimparted by movements of the occupant is transmitted directly fromsocket 17 through stabilizer feet 23 to a separate portion of plank seat3, with the result that the stresses on the plank seat are welldistributed. Thus, it is not necessary to make member 9 so rigid andcumbersome as if all the stresses were transmitted to the edges of theplank seat.

Although the present invention has been described in conjunction withpreferred embodiments, it is to be understood that modifications andvariations may be resorted to without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention, as those skilled in the art will readilyunderstand. Such modifications and variations are considered to beMoreover, a large 3 within the purview and pended claims.

I claim:

1. A mount-ing for a boat seat, comprising in combination, an elongated,longitudinally extensible --member adapted to be positioned transverselyof a plank seat of a boat, said member havinga lower surfaceadapted tolie flat on the upper surface of said plank seatfa spider mounted on topof said extensible member andintermediate the ends of said extensiblemember, said spider having a vertical, cylindrical, upwardly-open socketfor receiving and rotatably supporting the lower end of a swivel scopeof the invention andap post of a boat seat,-said spider having aplurality of webs extending radially from said socket, two of said websbe-' ing downwardly and outwardly of said socket in stabilizer feet, thelower surfaces of said stabilizer feet being co- 0 planar with saidlower surface of said extensible member and 'being adapted to contactsaid upper surface of both ends of said extensible member, inwardlyextending cams mounted for rotation on said legs about axes transsaidplank seat, downwardly depending legs disposed'at-g;

verse to said member, said cams having inner arcuate cam surfaces, theupper portions of said cam surfaces being spaced farther from theirassociated said axes than the lower portions of said cam surfaces, andmeans for adjusting the length of said extensible member, to cause saidcams selectively to grip the opposite side edges of said plank seatbetween said cams and draw said mounting down onto said plank seat withsaid stabilizer feet in contact with said upper surface of said plankseat to brace said mounting against lateral tipping, or to release saidplank seat.

2. The invention of claim 1, said extensible member comprising a pair oftelescoping members, said telescoping members being complementary toeach other and polygonal, to maintain said axes of said cams parallel toeach other.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

